Lord Dagult Neverember
Lord Dagult Neverember, also referred to as The Protector, is the current Lord Protector of Neverwinter. He can usually be found in the Hall of Justice in Protector's Enclave. He is from Waterdeep where he also holds the title of Open Lord and one of the wealthiest men in the Sword Coast. After the recent troubles of Neverwinter he has taken it upon himself to rebuild the once great city. He started by cleaning up and reconstructing the area later renamed Protector's Enclave in his honor. Although he holds the Crown of Neverwinter in his possession, he does not claim to be king and never wears the crown in public. Perhaps he does not desire the title, or perhaps it is the a long held belief that the Crown of Neverwinter would kill any who do not have the right to rule... His reign is not without it's detractors; and they frequently refer to him as "The Pretender", a pun on his title "The Protector". His main political opponents are the Sons of Alagondar and their violent splinter group, the Nashers. Led by Arlon Bladeshaper, who claims to be a descendant of Lord Nasher Alagondar, the Nashers are not above violence and criminality to enact their goals. It is not possible for a pre-level 60 player to talk to Lord Neverember. If you approach, a nearby guard will stop you and tell you "no one may approach Lord Neverember without permission". You can ask him "why not?" and get in a humorous and informative conversation with a lowly guard just trying to do his job. Upon reaching level 60, the Protector will award the player the title "Friend of Neverwinter as well as a cloak. New Neverwinter I am more than pleased to offer my services and gold to rebuilding this fine center of culture and trade. Through our combined efforts, Neverwinter will be reborn as a bastion of good in the Sword Coast North! —Dagult Neverember The New Neverwinter movement is gaining a foothold as Lord Dagult Neverember’s hired hands and goons patrol the streets and rebuild the city. Neverember ostensibly takes his role as protector seriously, sending his mercenaries to oust the orcs in the River District, repel plaguechanged monstrosities at the Wall, and otherwise keep the peace. The lord endeavors to lure home and win over Neverwinter’s refugee population. He is focusing on rebuilding the city, maintaining order and trade, and putting silver (if not gold) into residents’ hands. The New Neverwinter concept is a propaganda tool the Lord Protector is using to stir up nationalistic emotions in the populace. This tactic, combined with the physical improvements to the city, has drawn most residents over to Neverember’s camp. However, some factions within the city consider the idea of a “New Neverwinter” an insult to the city’s sovereignty.The foremost oppositional faction is the Sons of Alagondar, a group that actively opposes Neverember and his plans. Its followers are busy plotting, setting traps, and enlisting whatever aid they can find. Villain or Champion? Lord Neverember’s role in Neverwinter is up to you. Although he’s not wholly selfless, the regent could play the part of heroic leader of the people. Alternatively, his claim could be false, and his efforts to rebuild the city might be only a stepping stone in some plan to dominate the Sword Coast. Regardless which side of the moral compass Neverember sits on, the characters’ efforts could put him on the throne or depose him. Heroes might use the protector’s forces to stabilize the area, or they could run him out of the city. Goals Lord Neverember has many goals in the region, and he can accomplish them all by serving as protector of Neverwinter and ingratiating himself with the people. The regent ultimately would like to build a mercantile empire across the North, but he must first stabilize the region so he can establish solid, reliable trade routes. Claim the Throne Running Neverwinter is one thing, wearing its crown is another. For an outsider such as Neverember, the Open Lord of Waterdeep, the difficulty increases tenfold. Most of the refugees who have returned to the city support him for now. But if the regent were to crown himself, Neverember’s support would likely dry up as rebels fanned outrage and denounced him as a foreign conqueror attempting to annex Neverwinter. Therefore, Lord Neverember must move carefully. His plan is simply put: Make the people love him. The process, however, is a bit more complex than that. The regent intends to ensure that Neverwinter citizens are bathed in reasons to feel gratitude to him—new facilities, new market opportunities, access to goods and work, and safety. Then when the time comes for a new king, Neverember envisions the masses asking— nay, begging—him to don the diadem. Theme Tie-In Having plumbed the depths of his ancestry for any connection to past Neverwinter rulers, Lord Neverember is well aware that other claimants to the crown could surface. Thus, the regent keeps an eye out for reliable spies to watch for and report on any would-be heirs. If anyone in the royal lineage were to go public, Neverember’s aspirations might turn to ash. Neverember could hire characters for one or more such surveillance jobs. Alternatively, the regent might assign a spy to trail a character who has the Neverwinter noble theme. If Neverember is unable to deal with the problem quietly, he embarks on a campaign to discredit the supposed heir. Prove a Disputed Heritage While working heartily toward his goal, Neverember has yet to disclose his plans for the throne to anyone not critically involved in his maneuvering. The protector’s savants have managed to trace the lord’s heritage to the adventurer Vers Never, a supposed bastard son of Lord Nasher Alagondar and younger half-brother to Bann, who succeeded their shared father as king. As Neverember tells it, Vers settled in Waterdeep and married Mirtria Ember, thus forming the “Neverember” name. The protector knows his word isn’t going to be enough though. So Neverember has purchased, or hired scribes to create, books that link him to the royal line. The regent has also had more than one book committed to flames after their testimonies proved less than helpful. Theme Tie-In Neverember is always on the lookout for self-sufficient sages he can hire to delve into vaults that survived the cataclysm to search for evidence to support his claim. The heroes—particularly if an Oghma’s faithful character is among them—fit this bill well. What they find might support or contradict Neverember’s claim. Perhaps Vers Never died childless or did not exist at all. One way or another, any factual revelations are sure to draw fire from the regent or his opponents, unleashing a variety of potential consequences. If such information becomes public, a campaign to discredit the heroes is likely. Alternatively, the characters might keep the information secret to use as leverage against Neverember, the rebels, or any other claimants to the throne. Protect and Run the City Lord Neverember has orated at length about his selfproclaimed responsibility to protect Neverwinter’s citizens and keep the city civilized. Beyond establishing common laws and keeping the peace, his mission primarily entails rooting out rebels and ensuring that the city’s defenses are well manned. Neverember is a natural delegator and cares little for the day-to-day particulars. He leaves the city’s policing, defense, and security operations to his mercenaries’ leader, General Sabine (use the human cavalier in Monster Manual 2). And he installed as mayor a dwarf named Soman Galt, who oversees tax collection, grants of property, and city files. Make Hard Coin Neverember knows his situation in Neverwinter is tenuous, so he goes about his business quietly. He prizes adventurers who can keep a low profile. If the lord’s bid for the throne fails, Neverember intends to ensure that the city’s economic stability is perched squarely on his shoulders, so he can rule from behind the crown. If all else fails, he wants to snag as much gold as he can out of the endeavor. Find Gauntlgrym Neverember recognizes the cultural and economic implications of rediscovering Gauntlgrym and is recruiting adventurers to search for the lost dwarven metropolis. If his seekers find it, the regent plans to rebuild the lost city—an action apt to win over a lot of citizens, especially dwarves. Hire Sellswords The Open Lord of Waterdeep is not foolish enough to install a force of soldiers from his home city. Such an act would make his efforts seem like an occupation and would fuel the Sons of Alagondar insurgency. Instead, to avoid the appearance of imperialism, the protector relies on soldiers from the distant island of Mintarn, most of whom are sellswords and former pirates. They operate under a tough-as-nails mercenary named Sabine. She serves as Neverember’s chief enforcer in the city and has come to represent the harsher aspects of his beneficence. The force—mostly human warriors (use the humans from the Monster Manual, Monster Manual 2, and Monster Vault)—patrols the streets in a strict, militaristic rotation. Under Sabine’s leadership, the mercenaries ruthlessly quash disturbances and work to eradicate dangers to Neverwinter and its people. Maintain Both Positions As Neverember’s focus on Neverwinter has intensified, he has shifted many of his Waterdeep duties overto the Masked Lords and his trusted seconds. On his irregular trips to Waterdeep, his days are a flurry of much delayed matters of law and state, such as meetings with merchants, public speeches, official events, summary court rulings, and conferences with the Masked Lords. So far, Neverember has managed to keep both pots cooking without boiling over. However, if public opinion in Waterdeep turns on the lord, he’ll find it significantly more difficult to focus on tasks in Neverwinter. Relationships Embroiled as he is in his many ploys, Neverember is unaware that several of his successes are actually the carefully calculates losses of other regional power players. Abolethic Sovereignty: The regent has no idea the Abolethic Sovereignty is hard at work far below his beloved Neverwinter, nor that its aboleths are sending minions topside to keep him busy. As far as he knows, the plaguechanged horrors at the Wall— which he finds grotesquely fascinating—are random Spellplague manifestations. Ashmadai: The secretive Ashmadai cult has made overtures of alliance to Neverember, which he has by and large accepted. The protector knows little about the society—whom its cultists serve, its goals for the region, and so on—and therefore tries to keep his cards close to the vest. He underestimates the Ashmadai, though, assuming he can safely use it for his own purposes. Meanwhile, the Asmodeus-worshiping cultists are methodically turning the regent’s people to their cause. The Ashmadai controls nearly all the mercenaries assigned to guard the Chasm, and its members are wooing a handful of the regent’s closest retainers. The effort goes all the way to the top: Ashmadai leader Mordai Veil is assiduously pursuing the attentions of Sabine, the leader of Neverember’s mercenaries. Ultimately, the cultists aspire to induct Neverember into their dark society. Thayans: The protector has received reports that Thayan agents are operating in the city. He has ordered General Sabine to sniff out any truth in the rumors. He is awaiting her findings. Netherese: Neverember is ignorant of Netherese interests in the region, and he has in the past unwittingly hired several Shadovar agents to conduct discreet assassinations. Encounters Although Lord Neverember has made serious efforts to secure peace in the streets, Neverwinter is far from safe. Grim-faced mercenaries sneer at passing refugees, while angry, armed rebels skulk in the shadows. Serious dangers lurk outside the Wall, and deadly threats rise from the sewers. The regent has dispatched his Mintarn forces to combat these threats and also has hired numerous solitary sellswords to sleuth, assassinate, sway, and mislead. The creatures on the encounter table are best presented as Neverember’s hired goons. Most of them hail from Mintarn, but he—or rather, his coin— recruits aid from far and wide. Lord Dagult Neverember The Open Lord of Waterdeep is a commanding noble. Big, boisterous, and affable, Neverember treats each new acquaintance as a friend. Beneath his congenial display, his quick mind is sizing up everyone in attendance, tallying potential gains or threats each could offer him. Despite feigning disinterest in scandals and hints of corruption, he mentally files away each rumor. He offers genuine respect to strong, intelligent male acquaintances and flirts outrageously with beautiful female guests. A shrewd negotiator, Neverember prefers straight dealing. He is well known as an economic puppet master, facilitating trade deals that shock even those involved. The open lord of Waterdeep is not a conventional villain. He is a ruthless opportunist and imperialist, arrogant and greedy, but he is not evil. In the right circumstances, he could prove an ally to the heroes Soman Galt, Mayor of Neverwinter Once a great explorer, Soman Galt has atrophied into a weaselly politician who projects a cold, disconnected presence. The dwarf stares absently, his eyes seeming to watch something no one else can see, and he often mumbles to himself. He is capable of rigid focus, however, when the situation warrants it, and he takes his work seriously. A former government official, Galt was a natural choice when Neverember sought a lackey to manage the city’s affairs. The mayor knows that Neverember considers him a stooge, and that fact doesn’t faze him a bit. Because the interloper from Waterdeep doesn’t know whose puppet Galt really is—namely, the Abolethic Sovereignty’s. Rohini, the Prophet of Helm’s Hold, used her brilliant mind and cunning conversational style to seduce the dwarf. Fascinated, Galt pressed for more knowledge of her greater mysteries, and in return an aboleth corrupted his mind. The mayor’s range of governmental responsibilities allows the Sovereignty to guide social policy, to know what parts of the Wall will be best guarded at any time, and to keep watch over the general goings-on in Neverwinter. Having such a well-placed asset gives the aboleths a considerable advantage over Neverwinter and will be invaluable when they decide to move against the topside vermin. Galt operates under multiple posthypnotic suggestions designed to serve the aboleths’ interests, and he pays covert visits to Rohini for additional conditioning. As such, his mind has been ravaged repeatedly, which has revealed new facets of his eccentric behavior and has reduced him to a pallid, sunken-eyed figure. Normally unaligned, Galt turns chaotic evil when aboleths control him or when he is bloodied. When Galt is in peril, his abolethic controllers take over. His limbs flail about, and his body appears to contort and shake in an uncontrollable fit. Galt is unaware of his abolethic taint and would be horrified—and possibly unhinged—if he found out about it. If Neverember Dies Even though Lord Neverember’s position in Neverwinter is far from secure, it isn’t particularly shaky. He is entrenched economically, politically, and militarily, making him the linchpin of Neverwinter’s stability. If the heroes or some other group kills Neverember (particularly early in the campaign), the consequences should prove dire and far-reaching. The protector is both loved and hated, so killing him would earn the party new enemies and new friends. Valindra and the Thayans, the Netherese, the Neverwinter rebels, and possibly the Ashmadai (depending on how successful they’ve been in corrupting Neverember) would likely revel in the lord’s demise and the ensuing chaos his death would unleash. Meanwhile, the Abolethic Sovereignty might decide to snatch droves of the returned refugees during the tumult. The Sons of Alagondar could try to take over, killing anyone (including the heroes) who attempted to take the protector’s place. As for the Mintarns, General Sabine would probably make a bid for leadership. If she were to take the city, Neverwinter would become a hardened, brutal police state. If she were killed or failed to claim leadership, the mercenaries’ ranks would collapse, and most of the sellswords would stream away in search of new work. Others would revert back to thieving, thuggery, and treachery. Ultimately, for good or ill, Lord Neverember is a stabilizing force in Neverwinter, and killing him before the city is reconquered would lead to pandemonium. It would also likely awaken the sleeping giant, Waterdeep, which could have an angry, dedicated legion of soldiers on Neverwinter’s doorstep even as rigor mortis took hold of their open lord. In short, Neverember’s death wouldn’t be the end of the story; it’d be the beginning of an epic new one. Abolethic Sovereignty Madness lies in the Chasm. If you want to enter, be my guest. I never liked you anyway. —General Sabine, Mintarn commander When the primordial Maegera erupted from its prison twenty-six years ago, the resulting volcanic destruction tore a deep chasm in the earth that sliced through a quarter of Neverwinter. This rift reached the depths of the Underdark, opening wide to an underground sea where a branch of the Abolethic Sovereignty was busy manipulating a pocket of Spellplague and covertly experimenting on creatures in and near Neverwinter. Once the Chasm opened, abolethic activity on the surface escalated sharply, and the aberrant creatures began mutating many more topside monsters and plaguing sentient beings with nightmares and bizarre hallucinations. Of course, these mental violations are paltry in comparison to what the Sovereignty hopes to unleash with its Spellplague experiments. History A notable consequence of the Spellplague was the advent of the Abolethic Sovereignty. This kingdom of aberrant creatures was transplanted from Abeir, Toril’s twin world. The aboleths settled in and forged Xxiphu, a flying citadel that roams the world and is most often spotted in the Sea of Fallen Stars. The Sovereignty quickly took an interest in the Spellplague, which had brought its kingdom to Faerûn. It began locating and studying areas of active Spellplague caught within magical fields or trapped in the earth’s depths. The aboleths found one such patch in Underdark, far beneath Neverwinter, and a branch of the Sovereignty took up residence there several decades ago. The aboleths have been using it—and creatures kidnapped from the city—for their ambitious experiments. When the cataclysm claimed Neverwinter and opened the Chasm, the aboleths’ operations were in danger of being exposed to the surface world. Since moving the patch of Spellplague was not an option, the Sovereignty instead bolstered its defenses and sent the results of its early experiments toward the surface to repel or discourage any would-be explorers. The city above had already fallen into chaos, so no resistance was mounted. The aboleths rested contentedly for years thereafter. Then, ten years ago, Neverember arrived in the city. The resulting flurry of activity drew the Sovereignty’s attention, and the aboleths came to see Neverwinter’s reconstruction and resettling as a threat to their larger plans.